Bogensperk Castle

Bogensperk Castle (Grad Bogensperk) stands at Smartno pri Litiji in Central Slovenia, east of Ljubljana, and is best known as the home of the polymath Janez Vajkard Valvasor (1641-1693). A castle is documented on the site from the Middle Ages, and the present building, with Renaissance and Baroque features, was reshaped in the 16th and 17th centuries. Valvasor bought the estate in 1672 and lived here until 1692, writing and printing his monumental work The Glory of the Duchy of Carniola (Die Ehre deß Hertzogthums Crain), published in 1689 in four volumes with hundreds of engravings of castles, towns, customs and natural phenomena. He set up an engraving workshop and printing press in the castle, which makes Bogensperk one of the cradles of Slovenian printing and natural science. Valvasor was also a member of the Royal Society in London, elected in 1687 for his studies of the Cerknica intermittent lake, and the castle became a centre of correspondence with European scholars. After his financial ruin the estate was sold and passed through other families, and in the 20th century it fell into disrepair. A thorough renovation in the 2000s restored the building and it now operates as a museum. Visitors see furnished rooms of the 17th century, an exhibition on Valvasor's life and work, a replica printing press and engraving workshop, a collection of copperplates and a small display on the history of printing. The interpretation is thematic and interactive, often with costumed demonstrations, and the castle also hosts events, weddings and a restaurant. The building is in good condition and remains a centre of local cultural life. The work, written in German for a European readership, described the geography, history, nobility and folk customs of Carniola, and its engravings remain a principal visual source for how castles and towns looked in the 17th century. The castle's displays allow visitors to trace how the book was researched, drawn, engraved and printed.